


Intricacies

by Coffeegf



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Arranged Marriage, Bartender AU, Depression, F/M, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Romance, Smut, Social Anxiety
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-02-10 04:58:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12904578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Coffeegf/pseuds/Coffeegf
Summary: You thought that the only thing this bartending job was good for was the money. You never thought something would happen to change your life in such a drastic way, especially on your first night.Until a handsome stranger in a business suit walks into your life.He's perfect. Too perfect. He must be hiding something...





	1. First Night

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! So for those of you who are still waiting for Buried Underneath, I promise it's coming!!! I could go on and on about how crazy life has been but I know you don't want to hear it. I'm so sorry it's been so long!
> 
> Anyway, here's my Bartender AU! I've had this idea for a few months and I'm so happy I'm finally writing it. 
> 
> This chapter's a bit short since it's mostly introductory stuff. Next one will be longer! I hope you guys enjoy! All hits, kudos, and comments are appreciated so much and I'll see you soon! <3

You looked with a grimace at the fluorescent lights on the building, aptly named “The Bar”. You rolled your eyes and audibly sighed before shuffling inside, trying to ditch the attitude and plaster a smile on your face.

_6 PM on a Friday and I have to be at this fucking hellhole,_ you thought to yourself as you took your sweet time walking in, the bitterness already eating away at you. You can already feel the anxiety creeping up on you, your knotted stomach doing nothing to combat the nausea.

Realistically, you knew you had no real reason to feel this way, but you dreaded social situations. Particularly ones in a completely new environment, with completely new people, doing a completely new job.

_Oh fuck._

Your hands started trembling as you reached for the door handle. But you took a deep breath and pulled open the door, your fake customer service persona coming out to help you get ready to her face the world.

As you step in, the patrons of the bar looked up briefly, some men ogling at you. You had dressed quite provocatively and stepped out of your comfort zone quite a bit to secure those tips. You felt your face heat up and could already tell this was gonna be a long night.

The music was blasting so loudly that people had to yell to be able to hear each other. You wondered why it had to be so obnoxiously loud as there weren’t even that many people in here. You could even tell on the day of your interview that the Bar probably wasn’t the most popular joint in Seoul. The volume alone was overwhelming, but you remembered to breathe through it and keep your head leveled. You’ll be okay.

“MC,” your new boss emerged from behind the bar area, “right on time.” You saw him take a quick glance at your chest. Fucking creep.

“Mr. Seok, I want to thank you so much again for this opportunity,” you exclaimed in a sickly-sweet voice and went in for a handshake. “I’m so excited to start,” you lied.

Mr. Seok escorts you to the back room where he leaves you to fill out some post-hire paperwork. You’re grateful for the few minutes alone before your training starts.

A bartender was absolutely not the ideal job for you due to your social anxiety, but you were putting yourself through college and absolutely had to settle for a customer service job to be able to make any money whatsoever. _This is only temporary,_ you told yourself repeatedly. You would have to suck it up since you had no other reliable means of sustainable income.

You knocked on Mr. Seok’s door and informed him that you had finished the paperwork. He proceeded to show you the basics such as how the timeclock works, how to use the computer and register to ring up customer orders, etc. You were then instructed to observe the other bartenders and learned how to pour a beer from a tap and make a couple of easy mixed drinks. It was going pretty well so far. You were able to keep yourself calm for the majority of the night by using that fake-ass customer service persona.

Thinking your shift was almost over, you take a glance at the clock for the first time that night. 8:06 PM. You had only been there for two fucking hours?

_Please, at least let something interesting happen tonight._

______

Jumin Han glanced at his watch. 8:06 PM. Jihyun is a whole six minutes late, he thought to himself as he huffed an annoyance, stroking his cat’s velvety white fur. He did not like to be kept waiting, especially when he was the one being forcibly dragged out.

_

“Jumin, I know that Sarah is weighing on your mind,” Jihyun had pressed. Unfortunately for Jumin, his best friend of near twenty years had known him so well. 

__

__

He tried his best to defend himself. “I am not troubled by that vile woman, as she is not worth the time nor energy to think of.” He tried to convince Jihyun, but couldn’t help the acidity that seeped from his words. 

He knew it was true. He couldn’t escape the thoughts of his wretched fiancée. He even shuddered at the word itself. The woman had been forcibly thrown at him and there was very little, if anything he could do about it for the sake of his own company. It was nothing less than a double-edged sword. 

“Come out for a drink with me,” Jihyun persuaded, “I’ll buy, and we can go somewhere where nobody knows us.” 

_

And that is why Jumin was now waiting to be picked up to go to this sleazy dive bar where he would otherwise never patron. The only good thing that could come out of this was alcohol, and he needed plenty of it. 

With a text from Jihyun announcing his arrival at the penthouse, Jumin walked out the door, hoping that this night would be over quickly.

______

8:30. Another half hour down was a plus, at least.

Your night had mainly consisted of making awkward small-talk with men whose eyes were wandering downward. In a way you were grateful that they were so interested in your body that you could say any damn thing you wanted and they would probably just go “Mm-hmm” like nothing had happened. The other thing you were doing was observing other bartenders and attempting to copy their drink-making methods. Thankfully it was surprisingly easy to memorize drink recipes despite there being so many of them. You mentally applauded yourself for doing so well thus far.

The place had hit a lull around this time, and you made a comment to yourself about how dead it was at almost 9:00 on a Friday night when the door opened up.

Two men entered. One was a slender man with a peculiar mint hair color and soft mint-colored eyes. The other…

_Holy shit._

A tall, pale man with messy jet black hair and sharp eyes wearing a business suit. Wooden and rigid, he was clearly out of his element being there. 

You had never seen anyone more captivating. You couldn’t help but stare at this mysterious stranger. 

Your hands began to tremble again as they came to sit down at the bar directly in front of you. Ordinarily in a situation like this, you would have passed them off to one of your coworkers, but you couldn't get away with that since they were sitting in your area of the counter. Thankfully you were able to push back the anxiety a little bit before engaging with them.

“Good evening, you two,” you flashed the most charming smile you could possibly manage, keeping your eyes locked on the black-haired man. “What can I get for you tonight?”

The black-haired man’s eyes locked with your own. Just like that, your night got a whole lot more interesting.


	2. Pins and Needles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MC gets to know the two men a bit better, and Jumin tries to decipher his unwelcome feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg, an update in a week? Craziness. But here it is! I can't thank you enough for all the support on this story already! I wasn't expecting this at all and I'm blown away! Thank you guys so much, and I hope you like how I'm continuing the story!
> 
> My tumblr URL is kaybunn.tumblr.com if you wanna come talk! I'm nice, trust me! I would love to make some new friends! Alright guys, have a great week and I'll see you soon! <3

Jumin Han was always cool and confident in any situation, so it was befuddling to find himself feeling this uncomfortable. 

Leading meetings in front of dozens of important executives, meeting with other CEOs to secure valuable business deals, getting on airplanes to fly across the world, and all of the other tasks his job often required of him never caused these feelings. This was all brand new.

It was an unwelcome feeling of being antsy, almost like pins and needles in his gut. The feeling was most unpleasant, and he couldn’t pinpoint where exactly it was coming from. 

It was nothing Jihyun was doing, as he was only harmlessly making small talk with the girl standing behind the bar tending to them. He didn’t think it was the girl either. Though each of the many times her eyes darted over and met his, the pins and needles feeling increased tenfold for a few seconds.

It was abundantly clear that Jihyun was trying to get Jumin to join the conversation as he was sitting there observing silently, but Jumin couldn’t seem to find any words to say. He clasped his gin and tonic that he still hasn’t sipped yet with both hands, absent-mindedly squeezing the glass.

“Don’t mind my friend here,” Jihyun smirked in Jumin’s direction, “he’s been having a rough go of things lately.”

The girl looked at Jumin and pouted, as if she was actually sympathetic toward him. _As if, he thought to himself, she’s only trying to capitalize on the situation._

“I’m sure it must be hard,” she leaned over across the bar, bringing herself closer to him, “but life will always go on. I won’t ask you what’s going on since we just met, but I hope that you find the light at the end of the tunnel. I’m glad that you decided to come out tonight though. If you ever need to talk, it’s part of my job to listen.” She winked.

The girl gave Jumin such a genuine smile, the kind that he had not seen in anyone other than his best friend. He couldn’t help but give a small smile back. 

The girl chuckled and said, “Glad I at least got a smile out of you.”

Ordinarily, Jumin would have found it completely preposterous to talk to a stranger about his problems. However, he truly couldn’t think of anyone else that he could talk to in this situation. His father was the one who got him into this, Jihyun was going through his own woes right now, and he didn’t feel comfortable enough with the rest of their friend group to talk with them about it. Maybe she was his best option at present. He would have to consider it.

“So, what can we call you, miss?” Jihyun inquired, taking a sip of his wine.

“MC. It’s a pleasure to meet the two of you,” she answered. “And you, gentlemen?”

Jihyun finished off his glass and handed the empty to her. “Call me V.”

MC’s eyes met Jumin’s again as she awaited his answer. “Jumin,” he stated, “Jumin Han. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, MC.”

“He speaks!” she clasped her hands to her mouth in fake surprise and giggled. He thought she was a bit childish, but it was strangely endearing to him. “Well, V and Jumin Han, it’s an honor.” She leaned in a bit closer, “Tonight is actually my first night working here and you guys are the only good ones I’ve met so far.”

“You’re sure it’s your first night?” Jihyun asked, raising his eyebrows.

She put her pointer finger to her chin, “Yep I’m sure,” she affirmed. “Am I doing okay?”

“You’re doing very well,” the words left Jumin’s mouth without him even wanting them to. He wondered what may have caused that compulsion. 

The blush was clearly visible on MC’s face, but she tried to avert her gaze away from his eyes in an attempt to cover it up. “Well, how would you know, Jumin? You haven’t even touched your drink,” she snickered.

Sassy girl. He liked it.

She was right, though. He looked down and realized that he still had a vice-grip on his drink. He reminded himself to relax his far too tense body and took a sip of the strong drink.

“Just what I needed,” he sighed. “Well done.”

Jihyun and MC continued to chit-chat for a while as Jumin stayed mostly silent, occasionally chiming in when they would start to discuss something he found to be actually useful. All he was doing was staring at the bubbly, giggling bartender. Even as the hours went by, he found himself never getting bored.

When the clock struck midnight, the boys decided it was time to start heading home.

“I can’t even tell you how much fun I had tonight,” MC smiled as the boys got up and put on their coats. “It was an honor serving you tonight, gentlemen.” 

“Lovely to meet you, MC,” Jihyun went to shake her hand, “I’m sure we’ll see you again soon.”

“Pleasure, MC,” Jumin shook her hand as well. It was smooth and soft, so unlike the hands he is so used to shaking all the time. It was a pleasant change.

The trio exchanged their goodbyes and Jumin and Jihyun walked out to the car.

Jumin still could not pinpoint the pins and needles feeling that he had experienced before, but he did know that he was curious about the girl. One encounter was not enough for him.

Perhaps he would have to come see her again.

______

_You did it girl, you fucking did it!_ You were cheering for yourself in your head, overjoyed that you were actually able to act like a decent human being while spending time with the two men. 

Jihyun was nice. Sweet, funny, nice to talk to. Just a pleasant guy all around. You were glad to have met him.

Jumin Han, however.

_Whoa._

His model-like good looks made you weak at the knees, his deep baritone voice gave you goosebumps, and his reclusive personality only drew you in further.

You wondered what had been bothering him so much, and if this was just the way that he always acted even when he wasn’t dealing with his own personal problems. 

Your mind started to wander, and you wondered if he was single. Maybe he was going through a breakup? You needed to know more about this guy.

When 1 AM finally rolled around, your coworkers showed you all the closing procedures. It was easy enough, and it was finally time to haul your ass out of there. You knew exactly what you were gonna do when you got back to your apartment. 

The Fakebook stalking was about to commence!

_

You finally made it back to your apartment, and immediately took off your uncomfortable heels and crashed on your couch. You pulled out you phone and typed “Jumin Han” into the Fakebook search bar. 

No profile results for him, but… articles about him? Wait, what? Who is this guy? Why would there be articles about him?

You scrolled down, and what you read made your stomach drop, your face flushed hot.

_Who is “Sarah?”_

_She is dating the son of C &R’s chairman Jumin Han?_

_The two are “definitely in love”?_

_The two are even engaged to be married?_

_The picture was definitely him, alright. There was no mistaking it._

Sure you barely knew him, but you were still upset to read this. You closed the app and turned off your phone for the night, retreated to your room to remove your makeup, put on your pajamas, and sleep for the night. 

_

_Another day, another dollar,_ you thought, walking into the Bar again the next night for your second shift. Maybe a Saturday night would be a bit busier.

That way you can get your mind off of Jumin Han, which you still hadn’t been able to do.

You knew that it wasn’t okay to be having these thoughts about him. According to that article your read last night, he was engaged. He was a taken man. _Get him out of your head, damn you!_

Your customer service persona was back out in full force, as you made drinks and mingled with your patrons. You looked at the clock to see that it was 8, and again you found yourself thinking, _Only two fucking hours in?_

You were behind the counter wiping some clean dishes dry with a rag when the door opened.

In walked none other than Jumin Han, in all his suited glory. And V was not with him.

You were completely flustered. You stood there like an idiot with your mouth hanging open and your face flushed bright red as he walked over and sat himself down right in front of you.

“Good evening, MC,” he folded his arms, his sharp eyes piercing your own, “I’d like to talk to you.”


	3. Let's Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jumin finally lets his wall come crumbling down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry it's been nearly a month. My computer stopped working so I had nothing to write on but I'm back! Once again, thanks for all the reads, kudos, and comments! You guys make me so happy!
> 
> And again my Tumblr is kaybunn if you wanna come say hi! See you soon! <3

You couldn’t help but stare quizzically at Jumin Han, who was looking particularly dapper this evening. You hadn’t been able to stop thinking about this man for damn near 24 hours straight, and here he was sitting right in front of you yet again.

_He wants to talk? About what? What’s going on? I didn’t have time to mentally prepare myself for this._ It was as if your thoughts were trying to attack you, and you could feel every muscle in your body getting tense from the building anxiety. Then it occured to you that you hadn’t even answered him yet.

He sat there with his hands folded together, his grey eyes watching yours’ expectantly. You had to answer him now, no getting out of it.

“Er- talk?” was all you could manage to sputter out, not having had time to get your charming alter-ego ready for him.

This didn’t seem to phase Jumin, his expression didn’t change despite how obviously flustered you were. “Yes, talk. MC, last night you told me that you were here if I needed to talk. I have never openly shared my feelings with anyone, as emotions are often just a waste of time to me. However, I find myself increasingly unable to function normally. Therefore, perhaps sharing my feelings with a kind stranger who knows nothing about me would not be such a bad idea,” he explained.

_Little do you know, I know more about you than you think._

You composed yourself a bit through sheer force of will, and you were finally able to respond to him in a coherent sentence. “Oh… Well, what I said was true. I could tell that something was bothering you even before V said something about it,” you were going to continue, but your mind shifted somewhere else. “Jumin, where is V?”

“I’m here alone tonight,” he affirmed, his brow furrowed. “Is that a problem?”

“No!” you assured, a bit too loudly. “I was just curious. You don’t seem like the type to go to a dive bar unless you were dragged to it,” you smiled, hoping you hadn’t offended him.

You heard him chuckle softly, and it make your heart race. “Right you are,” he smirked, making you weak at the knees yet again, “but tonight I’m making an exception.”

_Get ahold of yourself, MC, he’s an engaged man._

You nodded your head, and looked around the Bar. The only customers tonight were Jumin, and a couple at the other end of the bar that your coworker was taking care of. You rested your elbows on the table directly in front of him, your head directly at his level.

“I’m all ears.”

______

Jumin couldn’t get the girl’s words out of his head.

_“If you ever need to talk, it’s part of my job to listen,”_ her words played in his head over and over again like a broken record.

Sure, Jihyun was his best friend, but there was only so much he felt comfortable sharing with him given how much his dear friend had been through himself recently. He didn’t want to burden Jihyun any further.

The rest of the RFA, a charity organization that he and Jihyun were a part of, knew of his situation as well. However, he couldn’t tell them how he truly felt about it either. All they would do is laugh, and he knew it.

Ordinarily, Jumin is used to taking things in stride, and not letting things bother him as excessive emotion was simply a waste of energy, energy that he could be using to be productive.

However, this time he couldn’t simply brush it off. His own father was forcing him into an arranged marriage with that vile woman. He had been letting his anger consume him, letting it interfere in his work and daily life. He had to draw the line somewhere.

MC… He couldn’t stop thinking about her. She seemed like a kind and genuine girl. Her eyes sparkled as she stared at him solemnly. 

He thought, maybe this was the best thing for his own mental stability. Maybe she could get his mind off of things, at least temporarily.

_I will go see her tomorrow._

______

Jumin took a deep breath and exhaled, twiddling his thumbs a bit as well. He seemed nervous, and you wondered if there was anything that you could do to calm him down a little.

“Jumin, you can relax,” you daringly reached over and put your hand on top of his. He flinched at the sudden contact, but didn’t pull away. You two were staring each other in the eyes again. “This is a judgement-free bar,” you smiled. Your thoughts reminded you that he was an engaged man, and you pulled your hand away.

He cleared his throat and looked away from your gaze. “To get straight to the point, my father is forcing me into an arranged marriage,” he said straightforwardly.

He said it so casually that it had taken you a minute to process what he said. “What?!” you exclaimed too loudly, and you clasped your hand over your mouth. His eyes widened in surprise and he glanced around the bar to make sure no one was paying attention.

“Please keep your voice down,” he reminded you, his eyes narrowing.

“I’m so sorry,” you frantically apologized, “it’s just… this is the 21st Century. I can’t believe I’m hearing the words ‘arranged marriage’ this day in age.”

He sighed, looking down toward the table. “Yes well, I suppose some people still do that.”

Your heart broke for him. You could tell that he was trying to build up a strong barrier, yet it was quickly crumbling down. Your heart also broke a little bit for yourself, hearing the confirmation that he was indeed engaged.

“Why is your father forcing you into this? You’re his son. Why would he do this to you?” You could feel your blood starting to boil just talking about this. You felt like you were angrier than he was.

“My father is the chairman of a very prominent company in this country, and as his son, I am the heir. He is currently dating an actress named Glam Choi. Her student, named Sarah is the woman he intends for me to marry,” he explained.

You were blown away by his words. He’s the heir to a huge company and his father is dating Glam Choi?! However, you still didn’t fully understand.  
“But, I still don’t get why your father wants you to marry Sarah. Why is that beneficial for you in any way?” you couldn’t help but ask.

“It’s not,” he said matter-of-factly, “it’s more beneficial to him. Sarah is the CEO of her own failed company, and my father wants us to buy it. If I marry her, we can buy it at a discounted price, and his girlfriend will be happy.”

Your heart broke even further. “But it doesn’t make you happy…”

He finally looked into your eyes again. “No.”

You and Jumin spent quite a bit of time talking about his fiancee. He explained that she was shrewd, stuck up, materialistic, and some other words that weren’t quite so nice. She sounded like an absolute nightmare. He couldn’t name one good quality about her. 

Through his words, you could tell how all of this was eating him up inside. It seemed like he was finally letting someone see how he truly felt for the first time, and you were honored to have it be you.

It was about 11:30 and you were still chatting with Jumin when Mr. Seok came up to you and told you that you were free to go home early. You turned back to Jumin and gave him a sad smile.

“Well, I guess that’s that,” you sighed. You thought that the two of you would just exchange formalities and part ways when he did something that caught you completely off-guard.

“MC, I don’t want this night to end just yet,” he said quickly and without hesitation. “This may seem like a strange request, but would you like to come back to my penthouse with me?” He sees the nervous expression on your face. “Nothing perverse will happen, it’s nothing like that at all. I just… I’m having a good time. I can call a chef to bring a bottle of wine and make us a proper dinner.”

He looked up at you and smiled shyly, a faint hint of pink on his cheeks. He was so damn cute.

You knew you shouldn’t be doing this. No matter what the intentions were, you knew how bad it would look if the two of you were caught together in his house. The smart side of you was telling you to reject the offer.  


But that didn’t mean you were going to listen.

“That… sounds wonderful,” you whispered.

He smiled, clearly pleased. “I’ll call my driver.”


	4. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MC and Jumin enjoy a night at the penthouse, and also confront the elephant in the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey again! Thank you so much for all the support! I'm actually blown away by the traffic this fic is getting! Hopefully you all like the direction I'm going with it. <3
> 
> SIDE NOTE: I made a Ko-fi page. I'm having a lot of financial difficulties due to trouble with my family, as well as the fact that my job is severely cutting hours. I hate to seem like I'm begging for handouts, but even $1 will help me to get by while I look for another job and try to get my family and living situation squared away. PLEASE ONLY DONATE IF YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY ABLE TO AND COMFORTABLE WITH DOING SO. Just so you can get a little something, anyone who donates any amount of money can message me and request a headcanon or one-shot, something like that. There is absolutely no pressure at all. Even getting the word out there would help. You can find me [right here](https://ko-fi.com/K3K382SK).
> 
> Thank you guys again for everything! Love you all and I'll see you soon! <3

Saying that you got a lift back to Jumin’s place in style would have been a remarkable understatement. After leaving the bar together, he took your hand and helped you into a limo so fancy that you couldn’t help but feel desperately out of place. Jumin explained that the driver, known as Driver Kim, used to be a professional race-car driver. World famous, even. The older gentleman was polite and respectful, and made no comments about the unknown woman accompanying Jumin tonight.

You knew deep down this was wrong. The man is engaged, you thought to yourself over and over again. Whether the encounter was romantic or simply casual, and even though he didn’t actually love the woman he was supposed to be promised to, it could be bad for you if you were discovered and possibly detrimental to him. The sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach was equally matched by the unmistakable sensation of excitement. You typically feared the unknown and unexpected, especially in social situations. However, this time your anxiety was replaced with anticipation. 

The ride was silent, with the only form of contact being you and Jumin sneaking occasional glances at each other. You caught his eye, and he flashed that adorable half-smile at you that you’ve already grown so fond of. You suppressed the urge to reach out and place your hand on top of his, and hoped perhaps he was feeling the same way. You sat back and enjoyed the ride and watched the beautiful lights of Seoul in the dark as you wondered what the night would bring you.

The limo suddenly came to a stop. “We’re here, MC,” Jumin said gently, snapping you out of the daze you had fallen into. He opened the door on his side and walked around the limo to take your hand yet again and help you out.

When you stepped out, you were met with a sky-high building, barely able to see the top.

“Wow,” you gaped, “what floor do you live on?”

“The top,” Jumin replied, smiling a bit smugly as your eyes widened. 

The both of you thanked Driver Kim and wished him a good night before he drove off. You were extremely grateful for the older man’s silence. 

Jumin gently put his hand on the small of your lower back, leading you up the stairs. Goosebumps littered your body as the sudden touch, sending shivers down your spine. 

After a quiet elevator ride, you arrived at the very top floor. Relief at the two of you not having ran into anyone else was beginning to wash over you when -

_Oh Lord, are you kidding me?!_

Two men in suits (and wearing sunglasses at night) stood by the door of the penthouse. Given the guns and tasers they had on them, you assumed they were security guards. You couldn’t help but wonder if anyone out there wanted to hurt Jumin, but shook off that thought quickly as they greeted the two of you as you walked past. Again, the two men made no comments.

Jumin unlocked the door and opened it. “I’ll be right back, I must look for something,” he informed you before walking into another room.

You looked around, immediately amazing by your surroundings. Sleek and minimalist furniture, complete with a full bar in a side room. A lit up fish tank stood tall next to his bed. His bed was circular and huge, and right next to it was a huge, beautifully decorated - 

_Cage?_

“Uh,” you couldn’t help but sputter out, walking over to investigate. You felt your face turning bright red.

Jumin turned to look at you when you jumped a mile in the air at a sudden feeling of something rubbing up against your legs. You looked down to see a beautiful white cat looking up at you with big, sapphire eyes. It was clear that your reaction had frightened her as well. Suddenly the connection between the cat and the cage started to click.

“Oh my goodness,” you exclaimed, “I’m sorry! I didn’t know Jumin had a cat!” You bent down to pet her.

“There you are, lady,” Jumin sighed, visibly relieved. He walked over to join you in giving the cat affection. 

“You didn’t tell me about this beauty,” you said, stroking her soft fur.

He nodded. “Yes, this is Elizabeth the 3rd, my cat. I didn’t mention her on the way here because I figured the two of you would meet anyway.” 

You smiled and turned to face the cat again. “Nice to meet you, Elizabeth. My name is MC.” 

Jumin smiled. “Cute. You like animals. You must have a beautiful heart.” His words caused you to blush. “Not that I didn’t believe that already,” he added, looking down to avert your gaze. 

_Critical strike to MC._

After a few minutes of silence while petting Elizabeth, Jumin stood up and pulled out his phone. “I’ll go call the chef right now. Please, make yourself comfortable on the sofa. I’ll be right back,” he directed you there before walking to another room again. 

You plopped yourself on the couch before admiring the penthouse again. You noticed a beautiful balcony with a table and a couple of chairs through a sliding door. Though it was chilly outside, part of you hoped that you would be eating dinner there. The view must be incredible.

Everything here is incredible. Especially the man that you’re with.

Just as you were getting lost in your thoughts, Jumin was elegantly striding back into the main room, joining you on the couch a comfortable distance away. You yearned inch yourself closer to him.

“The chef will be preparing filet mignon for us tonight, if that suits your palate,” he looked at you with hopeful eyes.

You beamed at him. “That sounds wonderful.” Sounds fancy. You’d never had that dish before.

“He’ll be up in a few minutes, then he’ll need about an hour to prepare the food. We have time to kill…,” he trailed off, clearly not having a plan in mind. This seemed to unsettle him.

“Hmm,” you looked over at the huge flat screen TV across from the couch, “maybe we could watch a movie?”

He nodded. “I don’t particularly enjoy modern movies, so you’ll have to pardon my lack of knowledge on the subject. I trust your taste,” he said, handing you the remote.

Turning on the TV, you began scrolling through the movie channels and pay-per-view. You finally stumbled upon a movie that you had been wanting to see about a killer clown that lives in the sewers. Explaining the plot to Jumin to make it sound good was difficult, but he finally agreed apprehensively. Before starting the movie, he greeted the chef before the man disappeared into the kitchen. After this, he gave you the OK to start the movie.

You were absolutely horrified within the first 10 minutes. Before you knew it, you were curled up in a ball on the sofa while Jumin remained completely stiff. You caught him occasionally stealing glances at you out of the corner of your eye.

You were startled even further when Jumin suddenly moved toward you, placing his arm around your shoulders as if to offer some kind of comfort. Your heart rate must have increased tenfold, and your face must have been on fire from how hard you were blushing. After a few seconds of rigidity, you leaned a little closer to him, trying to help him fix his awkward gait.

It was comfortable, nice. Suddenly you weren’t so afraid anymore.

All of a sudden, you couldn’t pay attention to the movie anymore. The anxiety was starting to settle in again, and you pondered all the questions that you probably should have thought about before. Would his fiancee show up at the penthouse? Did she have access to it? What about his father? Would his employees spill the beans? Should you have done this? The thoughts were spinning around in your head to rapidly that you started to grow dizzy.

It must have been obvious that you were feeling off because Jumin worriedly asked, “MC, are you alright? Is the movie bothering you?”

“Oh… Yeah, I guess so. I guess I made a bad choice,” you lied, not wanting to tell him what you were really thinking about.

“Why don’t we turn this off…,” he reached for the remote and turned off the TV. You still continued to stare at the black screen.

It seemed as though he was about to speak when the chef called the two of you and informed you that dinner had been prepared. The two of you silently walked to the gorgeous dining room where the entrees and a bottle of wine had been left on the table for you. 

The majority of the meal was spent in silence. Jumin seemed to be deep in thought as he sipped his wine. You couldn’t blame him since you were as well. 

You jumped slightly when he finally broke the silence. 

“MC… Have I made a mistake bringing you here tonight?”

That made your heart sink. He made a mistake? He didn’t want to have you here?” “No!” you exclaimed, probably seeming a bit too worked up. “Why would you say that?”

“I feel as though perhaps I was too forward.” His brows furrowed, his narrow grey eyes piercing yours’ yet again. “I have never acted so impulsively before, especially in regards to women. I am a man who likes to think everything out carefully and precisely. But… talking with you just made me feel so… light. Like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I’ve never felt this way with anyone, not even my best friend.”

Your eyes widened as he opened up to you, relief washing over you at him clarifying that he didn’t want to send you away.

“I invited you to my house because I didn’t want to let you go. I invited you here because I feel something special despite the fact that we’ve only known each other for a couple of days. I feel as though that has to mean something. I just think that you’re someone who should be in my life, some way,” he explained, once again averting your gaze.

You wanted to desperately to scream out how you felt the same and run up to him and kiss him right now, but the smarter side of you finally came out to play and you finally said out loud what you had been thinking all night.

“Jumin… I know you don’t love her,” you refrained from using her name “but you’re still engaged in the eyes of the public. What happens if I was ever caught here, or with you at all?”

“I intend to break off this engagement,” he sneered at the word, “as soon as I possibly can. All I need to do is convince my father. Although he’s exhibited questionable judgement in the past, I am his only son, and I trust that he will be rational once he sees that I’m unhappy.”

It was clear that he was trying to convince you, but he wasn’t so sure of his words himself.

“But I can’t be seen here Jumin,” you reiterated. “I don’t want to cause any trouble. Plus I don’t think that me being spotted with you would help your case with your father either.”

He pondered your words, swirling his wine glass around. “That’s true… I can think of only one solution.”

“What’s that?” You cocked your head to the side.

“Do whatever we can to keep this a secret,” he said matter-of-factly.

More anxiety. “And how do you propose we do that?”

His eyes bore into yours’. “My employees here are sworn to absolute secrecy. My drivers, chefs, guards, all of them. They know that if anything about my personal life is spoken of, they will be fired on the spot. And trust me, they don’t want that,” he smiled smugly. “Other than that, I will not be able to walk you into my penthouse again as we shouldn’t be seen together outside. This would also mean that we would only be able to be together here.”

You didn’t even know what to say. The whole thing was absolutely insane, but at the same time, you weren’t opposed to it. You just wanted to be a part of Jumin’s life so much.

“I’m sorry, MC,” he apologized, looking truly guilty, “I hate to treat you as though you were some sort of ‘other woman,’ but I couldn’t bare to part with you because of that vile woman who I don’t even love,” he reached out and grabbed your hand.

The smart side of you was apparently taking her leave for the night. “Alright…”

He smiled. A full, genuine smile. He got up and walked next to your chair, extending his arm to you. “If you’d like, I’d like to show you the view from my balcony. I’ve never experienced it with another person, but I assure you that it’s incredible.”

It was as if the man had read your mind. You smiled and excitedly took his arm and walked with him to the balcony after slipping on your jackets.

Your mouth fell open as you gazed at the beautiful lights of Seoul from what looked like a viewing spot in the sky. Jumin slipped his arm around your shoulder again and this time, you rested your head on his shoulder. Tonight you would momentarily forget about all the worry and just take in the moment with him. 

The wind blew your hair, and you pushed it behind your ears in an attempt to keep it under control.

You looked at him, “It’s so beautiful, Jumin.”

He looked back at you with tenderness in his eyes. “So are you, MC.”

You didn’t have any time to react before his lips met yours’. The kiss was brief as he pulled away quickly to gauge your reaction. You said nothing, instead using your eyes to let him know that you wanted him to continue.

His lips met yours’ again, but with more passion. His cradled your face with his hands, and you opened your mouth allowing him to deepen the kiss even further. Your tongues intertwined and before you knew it, it was a full on make-out session.

He had you pinned against the guard rail when he suddenly pulled away, his face flushed.

“MC…,” he whispered breathily, his eyes full of lust.

“I want so much more,” you said in his ear, unafraid.

A devilish grin flashed on his face before he picked up up, one arm under your back and the other under your knees.

“I’m happy to oblige.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like my work? [Buy me a coffee](https://ko-fi.com/K3K382SK) if you'd like and are able to do so! <3


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